It is, of course, generally known to take photographs of events, people, and everyday objects. Photographs are one of many ways of documenting events, and are often used to preserve memories of people, places and/or things.
Photography, like other forms of art, is often more than simply pointing a camera and taking a shot. Photographers, including amateurs and professional artists, can spend long periods of time and expend much energy manipulating a subject in a certain way, such as in a particular pose, to obtain a quality photograph. Sometimes, subjects are not very photogenic, meaning that the photograph of the subject does not flatter the subject of the photograph. With help, a photographer may increase the quality of the non-photogenic subject's photograph.
Often, there are specific techniques known to those skilled in the art that increase the quality of photographs. Certain expressions, poses, arrangements, moods, themes, etc. may appear better in photographs than others. Additionally, certain photographs may be best only in certain lighting, environment, location, and other like factors. Also, the addition of filters or other photographic manipulation, such as taking or changing a photograph in color, black and white and sepia, or manipulating the photograph using distortion, fish eye, or other filters may make certain photographs appear better to viewers. It is often difficult, however, without formal training, to utilize these techniques to take quality photographs. A need, therefore, exists for a device and method of taking photographs that allows users to easily use one or more specific techniques to enhance the quality of the photograph.
Commonly, an artist may arrange his or her subjects, known as posing, for a photograph. If the artist is in a private location, the artist may be able to more easily control various aspects of the photograph. If the subject is a live subject, however, it is often difficult for the artist to obtain the intended expression, pose, arrangement, mood, theme, or the like. Further, in a public location, random events, people, and everyday objects can interfere, block, or otherwise disrupt a photograph. A photographer may miss an opportunity and lose the intended expression, pose, and/or mood, as a result of this disruption. It is often difficult to recapture a missed opportunity because the moment has fleeted or the photographer cannot articulate what that opportunity was or the subject cannot appreciate what the photographer was trying to do.
Generally, artists prefer having complete control over what goes into a photograph. In this regard, it is common for artists to photograph in private locations. Without disruptions, the artist may be able to direct or instruct the subject to obtain a specific expression, pose, arrangement, mood, and/or theme. Often, this requires an artist to direct a subject, choose a shooting location, and repeat these steps until the artist is satisfied. Oftentimes, the artist must physically move the subject into the intended pose or arrangement. When ready for shooting, the subject may have moved, the lighting may have changed, or something else may have occurred to cause difficulty for the photographer. Alternatively, the artist may attempt to verbally direct the subject into a particular pose. Often, it is difficult for a photographer to communicate to a subject how to pose a particular way.
Frequently, photographers have inspiration in their minds that they cannot articulate accurately. This may be due to not having enough time to fully describe the idea, not having enough time to perfectly pose the subjects, frustration with subjects or the environment, or other inefficiencies. Often photographers have to rely on standard expressions, poses, arrangements, moods and/or themes. A need exists for a device and method of photographing that aids in portraying the photographer's inspiration besides verbal instruction or physical posing.
Commonly, when a photograph is taken, the results are not what the photographer had intended. The photographer may have had a picture in his or her mind that he or she cannot articulate well or cannot capture as well as previously anticipated. As a result, the photographer may not have captured the expression, pose, arrangement, mood and/or theme that the photographer had intended to capture. Many post-photograph manipulation programs have been created that allow an artist to reshape an already taken photograph to what they may have intended. These programs, such as Adobe® Photoshop®, may not provide the level of photographic manipulation required to remediate the photograph. Moreover, these programs are often complicated and difficult to master. Additionally, a need exists for a device and method for taking photographs that allows a photographer to capture an intended expression, pose, arrangement, mood and/or theme.
Frequently, the photographer taking the photograph is the subject of the photograph. Self-portrait photographs, known as “selfies,” have become increasingly popular due to more easily accessible photograph equipment that allows a user to easily point the camera at his or herself and see the results through a view screen. However, certain poses or arrangements may be difficult when the photographer is the subject of the photograph. A need, therefore, exists for a device and method of photographing that allows photographers to more easily take self-portraits in particular poses.
Commonly, advanced camera equipment has certain capabilities such as face detection. Face detection software, generally, recognizes a subject's face and projects a square around the subjects face on the camera's digital display. This software interacts with the camera's autofocus in order to focus more on the subject's face. However, this software fails to aide in a photographer's arrangement or portrayal of the photographer's expression, and in certain cases may impede or distract an photographer from taking a photograph with an intended pose or mood.